This invention claims priority based on U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/076,946, filed Mar. 5, 1998, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
This invention relates generally to intraluminal prostheses, and more particularly to intraluminal stents comprised of zig-zag or sinusoidal wire hoops.
A common method of treating vessel diseases such as stenoses, strictures, thrombosis, or aneurysms involves placing a stent into the affected vessel. Among other advantages, stents prevent vessels from collapsing, reinforce vessel walls, increase cross sectional area (and thereby volumetric flow), and restore or maintain healthy blood flow. Many stents have been developed, and the prior art includes a wide variety of types and methods for their manufacture.
The present invention is a generally cylindrical intraluminal stent including a plurality of circumferential wire hoops disposed in succession along the axis of the stent. Each of the hoops has zig-zag or sinusoidal members defied by a successive series of struts connected by apex sections alternately pointing in opposite axial directions. The struts may be substantially straight sections connected to essentially sharp apex sections in a jagged zig-zag configuration, or the apex sections may be more rounded so that together with the struts there is formed a sinusoidal configuration. The lengths of these struts may be uniform throughout the stent or may vary alternately or continuously. Likewise, the angles or radii of curvature and configurations of the apices may be uniform or may vary. To provide mechanical integrity, selected portions of the hoops may be secured against relative axial movement, such as by spot welding overlying straight sections either in an individual hoop or in adjacent hoops. Such connections may also be made with bridging members aligned with straight sections in adjacent hoops.
These connections (with or without intervening bridging members) may be disposed in one or more linear or helical paths along the length of the stent, thus acting as stabilizing spines. Alternatively, these connections may be disposed in other preselected patterns, such as alternating around the circumference of the stent, to impart stability at these preselected locations.